The Y Suit
by WDen213
Summary: In an effort to be the son Howard Stark always wanted, young Antonia Stark creates the Y Suit. A suit that helps her pass as a boy, until it malfunctions after a battle in which she and the Avengers fight Loki. No longer able to pass, genderfluid Toni scrambles to create another suit, but finds love overlooks such things. FemTony, Will be FrostIron. T for now.
1. Chapter 1

**Heyo! Just a warning that this is a very short chapter. It's an introduction, really. Not quite a prologue, but not quite a first chapter due to it's length. Don't worry! I should have the next chapter up some time today to make up for it!**

 **Anyway, I'm Aidan! Nice to meet y'all!**

 **Unfortunately, Marvel and all of its wonders do not belong to me, it's merely a world my imagination likes to dabble in.**

 **Please read and review! Not my first rodeo, but my first in a very long time, and my first under this account. Also my first fanfiction that isn't Harry Potter...**

 **Enough rambling, I hope you enjoy!**

 **-Aidan**

* * *

"You should have been a boy." The words rang out clear and matter of fact over the work-place that four-year-old Antonia wasn't often allowed to see. "If you had been a boy, I could have shared all of this with you. This entire empire would have been yours someday.

"But father.."

"Not now, Antonia. You do not interrupt when your betters are speaking. And who are your betters, dear?"

She looked down at her perfectly shiny, unscuffed mary-janes. "Elders, men, and people smarter than me."

"Good girl," Howard answered off-handedly before continuing. "Now. As it is. Daddy is going to give you the chance to prove myself, and the world, wrong. That means, Miss Antonia Edwina Stark, that you will be allowed in my shop."

Her eyes flashed up in confusion. One of her daddy's biggest rules was not to even go near the door to his work space. Howard quirked an eyebrow at her, waiting for a retort that never came. She forced her eyes back down to her shoes, signaling that she would listen quietly, like a good girl. She heard her father move away to one of his tables and pick something up, and allowed her eyes to dance around the room, alighting on tools, partially finished projects, and a few finished but discarded ideas.

"Toni," Howard started, "I want to share this with you. I do. But I need to know that even though you are a girl, and even though girls are flighty, emotional beings, you will be able to lead all of this someday. That means that you will have to prove your mind worthy. Nothing small will do. Your creation must be life-altering. You must prove yourself just as good as a son of Howard Stark should be."

Those words rung in Antonia's mind. "You must prove yourself just as good as a son of Howard Stark should be." "As good as a son of Howard Stark should be." "A son of Howard Stark."

"I will, papa," she promised. "I'll be the best son you ever wanted."

Howard frowned at her, already starting to doubt his judgement because of her perceived take on the words. "I'll leave you to it, then. Don't hurt yourself on the tools."

Toni ran her fingertips along the edge of one of the tables. Her mind was whizzing through possibilities, most of which had to do with the thick volume weighing heavily against her back in the schoolbag that was slung across her shoulders. Anatomy. It was her current favorite subject, and she had made her way through enough books on the topic to know more than most doctors could remember off-handedly. She was a genius, there was no doubt about that. But to be a true son of Howard Stark… Toni picked up a pen and notepad and began a list of what she would need to start. She would become the son Howard wished her to be, and that project would be her saving grace.

The little girl thought carefully, sitting atop a stool at one of the tables, chewing the end of her pen thoughtfully while her legs swung happily. 'I can't change my chromosomes,' she thought to herself. 'But I can change my outward appearance.' Her mind flew through the perceived differences between a boy and a girl. Sketches began to fill her page of the physicalities of the two genders, many of those drawings overlaying each other so that she could study the subtle differences. "A suit!" she exclaimed to herself. 'A suit to cover a girl's body to make them look like a boy,' was scrawled across the page. She glanced through her notes so far and her mouth twitched into a smile at the notes on chromosomes at the beginning. As a girl, it was her two X chromosomes that presented a problem. This suit wouldn't change her chromosomes, but it would change people's perception of which she possessed.

Her hand moved carefully across the top of a new page, giving it a clean, neatly written title. 'The Y Suit.'


	2. Chapter 2

**As promised, Chapter 2!**

 **I still don't own Marvel, unfortunately, but I like to think the concept of the Y Suit is pretty original and fully mine!**

 **Let me know what you think in the reviews!**

 **-Aidan**

* * *

Toni sat on the lid of the toilet in her private bathroom, her feet tap-tapping nervously against the porcelain floor on either side of the commode while she studied the scissors in her right hand. Her left hand tugged at her loose dark curls while she worked up the courage to bring the scissors to them. Screwing her eyes shut tight, she brought the blades in close against her scalp and squeezed them together; that first liberating, yet panic-inducing _shhhnnnnkkk!_ causing a few long locks to slither down the plastic sheeting she had draped around herself to the floor. There was no going back now. She did her best to cut evenly, leaving the top a bit longer like her father had his. It had been five years since Howard had given Toni use of his shop. Five years, and many small cover projects to give him something to show for the concession. Each project was good, but would fall just shy of ground-breaking. But, that was her intent. He wasn't meant to give in so easily. He would shake his head in disappointment, but grudgingly offer a critique of her work. Some of her ideas had been implemented in his own work, but it wasn't enough.

The Suit would be. It had taken some very fine engineering work on Antonia's part to work it into something that didn't seem like a poorly crafted Halloween mask. The entire thing fit better than the finest tailored kid gloves, and it moved with her with a seamlessness she had labored over tirelessly. She'd had to work in something where her own body movement powered the receptors inside of it. This allowed the suit to feel, and mimic, her heartbeat so that she had a pulse even wearing it. There were other things that this allowed as well. Her sweat would be carried through the suit so that it would sweat out of its own pores. She'd studied the anatomy of a boy's parts so that she could utilize them correctly in the suit, and, in the privacy of her bathroom, had learned to pee standing up. The nine-year-old had watched carefully when at school, so that she could practice the walk, talk, and behaviors of boys her age. When she was in her room alone, wearing most of the suit, save for the very last bits of the head pieces because of her hair, she was Anthony Edward Stark. A persona she had tailored over five years of careful scrutiny and work. Tony. Not Toni. Yet another Y that her suit had given her. Him. The suit had given Him the freedom to know that he could be the son of the great Howard Stark. Now, with the last change complete so that he could wear the entire suit comfortably, now that the bulk of his hair was gone, Tony was headed to dinner.

He knew it would cause a stir. He knew it would be something he really should feel anxious about. But if Tony was honest with himself, he was so comfortable in this new skin that he didn't feel anxious at all. Howard had asked for a son. It had taken five years, but Tony was about to give him what he had asked for. With a final check in the mirror and an adjustment of the cuffs of his sleeves, Tony left his rooms for the first time as a boy.

* * *

Maria was the first to react. Her footsteps faltered as she entered the dining room from the other doorway, and she gave Tony a puzzled look, which quickly grew to horror as she recognized the child in front of her. "H-Howard!" she stammered. "Howard.. Antonia has.. she's.."

Howard didn't look up from the minutes of his last debriefing as he walked in behind Maria. "What's she done now?"

"Hello, father," Tony said calmly.

Howard glanced up in annoyance, "Antonia, whatever it is you've…" his voice faltered and stopped. He neatly gathered the papers together and set them next to his place at the table and turned to face his daughter. Calmly, he examined the small person in front of him. From the slightly unevenly cut hair to the impeccable dinner suit, the child looked like a boy. "Very funny, Antonia. Is it a robot? Has this been your secret project? I must admit that so far, it's much more impressive than the other tripe you've been trying to pass off. I don't even hear a motor. Make it speak again."

"I'm not a robot, papa."

Howard frowned. "Again."

Antonia's eyebrows quirked together in puzzled frustration. "I'm not a robot."

Her father covered his mouth with one hand, gripping that elbow with his other hand as he stood studying his child's work in barely concealed amazement. "The _expressions_ ," he exclaimed. "Come out, Antonia. Let's discuss what you've done!"

He watched as his daughter stepped towards him and spread her arms as if to say, "Well, here I am." His amazement turned to disappointment and disgust as another idea came to him. "Who are you? Where did she find a boy her age that looks so much like her?"

"No, papa, it's me. Tony."

"Impossible. Is it makeup? Your mother will have your head for cutting your hair." Howard gripped her chin uncomfortably hard, trying to brush off makeup that wasn't there with a work-calloused thumb.

Antonia slowly unbuttoned her suit jacket and her Oxford shirt, removing them and draping them carefully over the back of a chair. She was left in her undershirt and trousers, standing before him. "Look, papa." She turned in a slow circle, her arms extended, allowing Howard to study the lean musculature of a boy who played hard.

The man watched carefully. "How?" he asked.

His daughter's eyes were resolute as she said, "Maybe us boys should talk in the shop, and explain it to mother later?"

Howard nearly laughed. Nearly. "Us boys." That's what his daughter had said. He gestured begrudgingly in the direction of his shop, watching the boy go in front of him. Even the kid's voice was different. Without the lilting, polished, feminine tones of a well brought up little girl, and instead bearing the confidence, sharpness, and attitude of a spoiled, high-brow little boy. They descended the steps to the shop that Howard had mostly left to Toni, and Howard looked around in unconcealed surprise. There, clearly displayed on the walls, were carefully drawn out plans of every bit of the hardware that Toni wore.

"You planned bringing me down here to see this," the Stark patriarch ground out.

"Well, yes. It's easier to explain this way."

Toni's posture was relaxed and at home in this shop, and Howard realized that since that day he had told his four-year-old daughter to make him proud, the child had holed herself up down here endeavoring to do just that. He'd barely seen her, and she hadn't caused any trouble. She was a private creature, throwing herself into research that was quite simply… brilliant. His eyes perused the drawings and notes carefully, rounding further and further with awe as he learned just what it was that his child had done. No longer was he annoyed at the idea that his daughter had taken his words to mean that she had to be his son… He had a son. He looked at the little boy before him. This child had truly made something life-altering, as he had demanded. Not only had the kid created something that would change her… his own life, but it would change Howard's too. Now Howard could introduce his child to the world, letting them know that Stark Industries had a successor for when the time was right. Not only that, but the possibilities that this suit afforded… The technology would be ground-breaking in the field of espionage. If they could figure out ways for it to be produced quickly and inexpensively enough, it would allow world leaders to move un-recognized. For the more wealthy and eccentric celebrities to move unhindered through paparazzi. And for the film industry! If it could be made at the right costs… Howard's mind was moving quickly through scenarios that could put him at the top yet again, all thanks to this brilliant child in front of him.

He looked Tony in the eyes and extended his hand for a handshake. "Well done, son."


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm not sure what I'm doing with my life anymore. This is three chapters in one day! Please don't expect that to be an every day thing? Once I've gotten into a** **rhythm with the story, I'm kind of expecting to update once or twice a week.**

 **Anyway, Marvel's still not mine, but I wish it was!**

 **\- Aidan**

* * *

Tony fidgeted in his seat behind the curtain, waiting for Howard to announce him. It was his tenth birthday, and it was the day of the press conference announcing his existence to all the people Howard had decided it mattered to. There were roughly five-hundred people in the room, all of them clamoring to know what the next big invention was that would be announced today. Tony heard his father take the steps up to the podium and clear his throat.

"Good people of Stark Industries, and everyone who does business with our company, thank you so much for being here today!" Howard's voice rang over the crowd. "We've got a very exciting announcement for you today, indeed! Who thinks they know what it is?"

A deafening roar met his question, and Tony scuffed his toe against the floor nervously. He wasn't worth this kind of reaction from anyone. He was just a kid, and had nothing to show for being the heir to Stark Industries, since they couldn't reveal the existence of the Y Suit. 'God, they'll be disappointed,' he thought to himself.

A slim, dark-haired reporter stepped up, catching Howard's attention. "What do you call your latest creation, Mister Stark?" she asked.

His booming laugh met the crowd. "Great question, Lacey. I call him Tony!"

"Him?" "Tony?" "What does Tony stand for?" "What is Tony?" The questions poured over each other.

"Tony? Why don't you come out and introduce yourself?" Howard called to him.

The boy swallowed the lump in his throat and plastered a smile to his face, jogging out onto the stage enthusiastically, waving to the crowd. His little tux was perfectly tailored and pristine, and his hair had long since been taken care of by a barber instead of scissors in the bathroom. He was a well-groomed, smiling lad, and the crowd took in his roguish, lopsided grin with enthusiasm. He came to a stop at his designated place to the right of the podium, and with Howard's press of a concealed button, the floor rose in a cylindrical pedestal that rotated slowly until it had raised up fully, leaving young Tony facing those gathered to meet him.

"Well, son, why don't you tell them who you are?" his father prompted.

"Hiya, folks!" The spectators cheered. "I'm Tony Stark!" This time, the cheers were deafening. Tony gave them a jaunty grin and half salute, and they went wild.

This was definitely a different experience. They adored him. He knew it was his father's prestige and prowess that they adored, but he couldn't get enough of it. Every wave and smile he gave them earned him cheers and the most positive attention he could remember receiving in any setting.

"Now, folks, I understand that some of you may have questions, but allow me to tell you a bit about young Tony here, and then we'll let you have your chance to ask whatever you like!"

Howard filled them in on their rehearsed story. That they had kept Tony's existence quiet so that during his most formative years, the family fame wouldn't go to his head. Now that he was reaching an age where he had his own brilliant ideas and proclivity for learning, it was time for him to be known by the world as one of the contributors to the think tank of Stark Industries. The reality was, Howard hadn't seen the existence of a daughter to be important enough to garner an **announcement** to the public. Now that Toni had changed his fates, and created the brilliancy of the Y Suit, he'd landed himself a well-earned place as the successor to the company. At least that's how it worked in Howard's eyes.

Now that Tony was a bit older, a bitter seed had been planted regarding his self-worth. Gender wasn't something Tony felt particularly strongly, and it was easy for him to take on the role of a boy because he wasn't very strongly drawn to the girly things in life. He was equally as unaffected by the things considered boyish, but that just meant that he was malleable. Malleable, but not unaffected. Howard's dismissal of his only child due to something that was, until the suit, uncontrollable, wasn't fair. It wasn't fair, and Tony swallowed back those bitter feelings as he listened to the lies that Howard had fashioned to explain his child's sudden existence to the outside world. The crowd ate up the story, and Tony smiled for the people who had accepted him so easily. After the press conference, when the hall was empty, and the chauffer had taken them home, Howard tried to congratulate his son on his entry into society, but Tony ignored him, and slammed his bedroom door in defiance. Howard looked to Maria, who only shrugged.

The headlines the next day read of a charismatic young lad, whose sheltered beginning had fashioned him into something humble and easy-going. Tony read the words like a sponge. They'd seen him, he felt. They'd really seen him. They didn't speak of him inheriting the arrogance of his father. They didn't see another Howard. They saw Tony. And Tony Stark is who they would continue to see; that was a vow Tony had made to himself as soon as he saw the first article. He kept each article that was written about himself from that point on, carefully snipping them from their papers to be stashed in a box on the shelf in his workshop. Through his preteen and teenage years, the articles added to the box would decry him as a reckless youth, but it didn't matter to Tony. He wasn't growing up to be another Howard.

* * *

 **I'm so sorry folks, but this story is on temporary hiatus. I currently don't have internet at home. I'll have internet back hopefully mid to late July, and then what I've written in the meantime will keep me ahead enough to post regularly if something happens again.**


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